


A Potter's Tale: Epilogues

by MagicMythMayhem



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Family, Gen, Minor Angst, Post Deathly Hallows, dealing with the past, moving forward
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-26
Updated: 2018-03-10
Packaged: 2018-11-05 01:08:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11002809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicMythMayhem/pseuds/MagicMythMayhem
Summary: A series of 3 one shots that take place after A Potter's Tale. To get the most out of these, and to avoid spoilers, reading the main story first is recommended!





	1. The Train

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own the Harry Potter series.  
> Let’s start by putting Sarah through her own personal hell, shall we?

Epilogue 1: The Train

 

            It’s been quite a while now since the Malfoys started using muggle transportation to get around the UK instead of magic transport. This was mainly for protection, as years of serving the darkest wizard in history leaves a nasty mark, both socially and literally. The small knit family just wanted some peace and be away from attention and heal together. They knew were they went wrong, especially Lucius. And as the three of them spent more time interacting in the muggle world, they realized they weren’t all that bad. Sure there were some rude people now and then, but both worlds had their flaws. They had been at this for a long while,  blending into the muggle world, and public places were not as daunting of a task anymore. They had found a nice new house as well. In fact, that was where they were headed. So on a summer afternoon if you saw Lucius, Narcissa, and Draco Malfoy on a public train being friendly with other passengers, you wouldn’t be surprised.

            The Dursleys were never fond of public transport. They liked their own car and their own space. But a while ago they were forced to go into hiding, and they had to leave everything they knew behind. The conflict was over, but none of them really wanted to return to world they knew. Of 4 Privet Drive and old routine. The once loud family had become quieter since that day, more aware of the world that paralleled their own then ever. They had become more aware of their surroundings. They hadn’t really lost anything, they could have gone back. But it didn’t feel right. So they sold that house and only kept some of the things they originally owned. Being in hiding and listening to the events of the war over the radio gave them a reality check about the Wizarding World, especially Vernon. They all saw how hard the wizards worked to protect everything they knew, and those actions protected the muggle world as well. The Order specifically worked hard to protect the Dursleys, and even tried to make them feel at home. This softened them and made them realize wizards and muggles aren’t that different, and healed some old wounds as well. By some time later they realized they really wanted a new leaf, and so bought a new house. In fact that was where they were headed. So on a summer afternoon if you saw Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley Dursley on a public train making friendly conversation with other passengers, you wouldn’t be surprised.

            No, if you saw the Malfoys and the Dursleys, once as opposite as could be and now understanding the other like never before, you wouldn’t be surprised. You might be surprised that there were no other passengers on this part of the train, but it wouldn’t be a big deal. The fact that the six of them happen to have simply wanted a quieter car was all the reason there was to have them meet. Again, it was friendly conversation. Politics, gossip, sports. Nothing too groundbreaking between the pairs as they chatted away. Except they missed one detail. They hadn’t noticed a scrunched figure in a corner of one of the seats. They were covered with a jacket and appeared to be asleep, stone still with a slight breathing. There was some carry bags with them, but nothing big or noticeable at first glance.

            Sarah Evans-Potter was jetlagged. Her flight from Australia was long, but worth it. She had spent 3 weeks with her girlfriend and all the energy finally came crashing down as the train lulled her to sleep. She enjoyed using muggle transport, less strain on her and her magic. Plus she was going back home to the Tonks house and the Burrow. The Tonks house was a usually a somber quiet, one that begs for noise and laughter, something to fill it up again, so that’s what she did. Different from the Burrow, which was guaranteed to be loud and noisy and busy while the sun was still up. Point is, sleeping on the train ride home was a good option. She picked a surprisingly empty car and tucked herself in with her jacket, an instinct that mimicked her godfather when he slept on their couch a few times, and unbeknownst to her, on the train as well. She felt the train stop a few times at different stations, but not hers. At one point she heard some people come into the car. But they were friendly and at a decent volume, so she paid no mind and went back to sleep.

            As it so happened it was Dudley and Draco, now quick friends, who stumbled upon the sleeping professor while on their way to explore the other cars. The closeness of the voices woke Sarah up. In a swift, well-practiced maneuver of putting on her glasses and polite tone of voice without even opening her eyes, she immediately greeted them. Even if it was a groggy “Well hello there”.

“Sorry to disturb you ma’am” said Draco quickly. Dudley nodded.

“Oh it’s alright. I needed to get up at some point” she smiled and stood to stretch.

“Draco, Dudley, are you boys alright over there?” Petunia called from the other end of the car. The two walked back over to their parents to explain. They saw her, and beckoned Sarah over. 

“Hello” she said politely. The four adults replied in kind.

“How long were you over there? You were hidden very well” Lucius said with a hint of amusement.

“A while before you all came. I was sleeping”, She said sheepishly. “What stop are you all at?”

“Three stops from the now, for all of us. King’s Cross.” said Narcissa.

“Oh my, we haven’t properly introduced ourselves,” Petunia said, “I’m Petunia Dursley.” She put her hand on the man to her right, “This is my husband Vernon,” and then gestured to one of the boys standing, “and our son, Dudley”, who waved.

As she spoke, Narcissa looked at her husband to silently ask if she should mention their last names, and he gave the slightest nod. She spoke next, “I’m Narcissa Malfoy, this is my husband Lucius and our son Draco.” Sarah’s heart nearly stopped.

As I said before, if you knew what led the Malfoys and Dursleys to meeting on a muggle public train one summer afternoon, you wouldn’t be surprised. Sarah Evans-Potter was not you. Sarah Evans-Potter did not know any of those things. Sarah Evans-Potter did not know how the two families had changed since they had last been with her brother, let alone last she heard news about them. Sarah Evans-Potter only knew what she knew. Sarah Evans-Potter only knew that she was inside a moving muggle public vehicle with the two families she never wanted to meet face to face, two families that had done her brother wrong and hurt her family for years. There they were. Six people that she hated, the only ones on that particular list people that were still alive, in fact. Sarah Evans-Potter had spent long nights thinking up a thousand words to say to the Malfoys and the Dursleys. Sarah Evans-Potter could say none of the things she had wanted, or thought she wanted, to say to them. Sarah Evans-Potter was very surprised. It took everything in her to not faint right there and maintain composure. She wanted to sit back down, pretend they weren’t there and perhaps if she sank low enough in the seat she could just disappear into the void.

“Alright, well I’ll just go back to my spot. Got some school work to do”, as politely and calmly and not-at-all-panicky as she could, turning to walk/run away.

“School work? You look a little old to be a student,” Narcissa remarked.

Sarah turned back to them, reluctantly, to continue the conversation, her mind in survival mode. “N-no, I’m a professor.”

 “Hmmm, you do have that sort of tone about you” said Vernon.

“I agree” said Lucius. _Oh screw you both. I’m freaking out that’s the tone I’m giving off. ‘Course any professor that meets the two of you would be scared to death if they had their wits about them so I really shouldn’t be surprised you think that’s normal._

“T-thank you. Well I have a lot to do. Nice to meet you all” she said quickly and hurried as inconspicuously as she could to her seat. She ducked her head down as if to get her bag and stayed out of their line of sight so she could catch her breath, calm down, and think of what the hell to do about this situation. _One of us has to leave sooner than later or I might die_.

“A bit skittish, but pleasant overall” Lucius said.

“A beginner,” Vernon concluded, “but I’m sure she is a fine teacher nonetheless. Look how eager she is to get working.”

“Something wrong Draco?” asked Narcissa.

“She looks familiar…” said Draco, his face deep with thought.

“More than that, she feels a bit familiar too” added Dudley, with a similar face, digging through memory.

“Really?” Petunia said surprised, “We haven’t met her before.”

“Nor have we” Narcissa said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It’s amazing the work ethic one has when they really don’t want to talk to someone. Sarah was getting more accomplished than normal. Her back also hurt more than normal. Both were because of the group of people sitting at the other end of the train car. She continued to look busy, hunched over so she wouldn’t make any sort of eye contact. _Of all the places! A public train!_ she thought to herself as she read through her lessons for the 3rd years for the sixth time, tweaking things here and there. _Why are they all on a public train?! Both have egos higher than Big Ben, no way they would willingly use something as low as public transport! And muggle too! Oh why are they here…_ she lamented inwardly. Outside she just grimaced, a vague enough expression. Sometimes their conversations drifted over to her. _I’m surprised they haven’t realized who’s a muggle and who’s a wizard. Would have thought it would be a sixth sense of hatred by now. Actually, I wonder why the Malfoys haven’t recognized me. My face has been plastered everywhere in the papers since I’ve been at Hogwarts. Heh, Harry calls it family tradition._ A small smile crept to her face. She couldn’t wait to be home! But seriously, although she was relieved that the Malfoys hadn’t said anything, she wondered if they recognized her at all. They made no signal that they knew her face. This meant they hadn’t read the newspapers within the past year. She wasn’t surprised that the Dursleys didn’t know her. She assumed the Potter family became a repressed memory for them, which was fine by her standards. Harry probably would make a face, but that’s fine too. She was the bitter one in this dynamic. Harry was the friendly sarcastic forgiving one, despite his share of traumas and issues. Everyone has their own way of coping, that’s one thing she got out of muggle therapy. Like hell she would let her brother be bitter after everything. No way! She couldn’t protect him before, so she was going to make up for all those years one way or another. They both were strong but it was in different ways. He was the talker, she was the fist-fighter. He didn’t need any more pain in his life. She already hit rock bottom and from then on climbed back up and refused to go down.

            But currently it felt like she was hanging upside down from her broom on that way up. They were right there! And she felt terrified. All those years fighting with her nightmares…she almost wished she was dreaming. Dreams were somehow less scary than real life, and she’s had some horrifying ones. Her eyesight started to get fuzzy every once in a while and sometimes when she blinked there was bright green light. The room spun occasionally and she gripped the seat. _This is getting bad…_ She gulped. She knew there was no immediate threat. She stopped asking herself why she got like this a while ago. She understood why. Understanding didn’t change anything.

“Are you alright?”

Sarah jolted upright and yelped. “What?” She turned to the aisle.

It was Draco, looking concerned, “Are you alright? You looked like something gave you a fright.”

 _Ah bloody hell._  Instantaneously her shields went up. “Yes, I’m alright. Why wouldn’t I be?” she smiled and tilted her head. Most people bought this lie.

“Are you sure?” and then there was the handful that didn’t.

“Quite sure!” she smiled again, putting everything into it to make him go away so she could breathe again.

Draco’s gray eyes bore into her with a deep, knowing look, like he understood what she felt, what was happening, even if he may not know exactly why. It scared her even more. “S-something wrong?” she asked, trying to suppress the crack in her voice.

“There is nothing here. Whatever it is, it can’t find you. It’s gone. You are here.” Draco said in a low calm voice. “You are awake and alive. Ground yourself. Nothing is going to hurt you” There was a pain in his eyes. Sarah gulped, not breaking eye contact. _That’s like… But how did he…_

“What’s happening over here?” a rough yet playful voice joined. It was Dudley.

Draco receded back and put on a small smile, nodding to him, “Nothing much. Just talking”.

Sarah nodded slightly. _You call that just talking?!_

Dudley looked at Sarah and then at Draco. There was something that passed between them; a note, a conversation, a thought, who knows. Dudley looked back to Sarah. There was that same look in his eye that Draco had. Understanding. Then it was gone and he smiled nonchalantly. “Yeah I just needed to get away from our parents. All adult stuff you know? Bo-ring”.

“Couldn’t agree more. If I have to hear more of the rising politics or how cute the new royal children are I just might go mad!” smiled Draco. Dudley laughed, and then Draco dissolved into a fit as well. Sarah tried to suppress the contagious laughter but it was in vain. The brown-skinned woman let out a snort and then tried to hide it, and the two boys looked at her and beamed. They knew how to comfort someone like them. She could tell they recognized her but they couldn’t pinpoint why. It was exactly like Ginny. There was something similar about the two boys. They looked worn physically, and there was nothing flashy or conceded about them like she had expected.

Draco spoke, breaking her train of thought, “So where do you teach?”

 _Uuuummmm not sure anyone wants to hear the actual answer_. “Ah, a Scottish private school”. That was the generic answer she always gave. There was a little flash in Draco’s eyes. Dudley’s too. A memory.

“Oh that’s cool!” said Dudley, “What subject do you teach?”

 _Ah-ha weeeell_. “It’s um, more of a practicality course. You know, real world problem solving and ah…defense. Against things. It’s about self-defense mainly. Really hands on.” At the world defense, both Draco and Dudley’s eyes flashed slightly, another memory. _Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. They have that look again._ _But I don’t know how to change the subject like this. I can do lessons but Harry is better at small talk. Aaaahhh._

“I didn’t catch your name before” Draco said. _That’s because I haven’t said my name. So that’s why you came over here. Well boys, you wanna know so badly you play the game like the rest._ “Sarah”. She withheld the satisfied smirk when she saw their faces scrunch up, knowing that they wanted a last name too. First names don’t help all too much. And she wanted to be the least helpful as she could while she was still trapped in a train car with them.

Petunia called from the other side of the car, “Come sit over here you three. Be social this way”.

Dudley looked to Draco and Sarah, “If you guys don’t want to go over we don’t have too”.

“I don’t mind going back” Draco said. They paused and waited for Sarah to answer. Sarah was scared out of her mind, but yet something told her to go over anyway. Something…new. Maybe it was the connection with Harry’s past, just like Ginny, maybe it was to confront this fear once and for all, or maybe it was the way Draco and Dudley calmed her down and then made her laugh in under ten minutes.

She took a breath. “Let’s go then”.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The conversation between them wasn’t much at first. Sarah sat in the seats behind the ones Draco and Dudley sat in, sitting with her legs in the aisle to talk diagonally with the adults, who turned their heads when needed. She introduced herself, first name only of course. Small talk. Then everything spiraled quickly. They asked about where she worked, and she gave the same answer.

“A private school eh? Dudley went to Smeltings, as did I. Best private in England” Vernon said proudly. Dudley rolled his eyes and mouthed ‘Whoopee’, causing Draco and Sarah to hide a chuckle.

Lucius and Narcissa looked a bit unsettled when Sarah said Scottish, while Draco was just that much more curious and decided to press it. “What is the name of the school? Perhaps I’ve heard of it” asked Draco.

Sarah didn’t notice the edged tone in his voice. She was too busy thinking of an excuse while trying not to explode. “It’s a small place. Not many have heard of it down here” she said quickly.

“How did you come across it then?” Petunia asked.

Sarah gulped quietly, scared of going into dangerous territory but everything inside of her was short circuiting so her lies and excuses only went so far. “Well I uh went there myself for schooling. It was where the fostering put me. And then I received a notice that a lot of professors l-left so I stepped up”, she said quickly.

“Fostering?” asked Petunia. _Fuck did I say that. Oh man I’m in rambling mode. One wrong move and the next step is something snapping._

“Um, yeah. I’m an orphan.”

There was silence, then Vernon asked, “How did your parents die? I assume they did”. Petunia shot him a look.

Sarah tried to control as much of her panic as she could. “Accident” she mumbled.

“What was that, dear?” Narcissa asked.

“Accident” Sarah said a bit louder.

“What sort of accident?” Lucius asked.

 _Bad area bad area Abort Abort_ “Ah, you know. A fatal one.” _I’m babbling and everything is bad._ Her vision was starting to blur again.

There was a slight pause. It was Petunia that changed the subject, but only slightly. “What is the subject you teach at this private school?” _Aaaaahhhhhhh still not on good topics. What did I say before? Did I say self-defense? Oh god did I go that close?_

“Uh, s-self-defense.”

“Well that’s an odd class. What sort of self-defense?” Petunia asked. Suddenly the train hit a slightly abrupt stop. Sarah, being occupied by internal things, lost her footing and quickly fell into the isle and on the floor. It jolted her into a calm state. It also startled her enough, along with the fear of answering the next question, to disrupt her magic balance, leaving her blind once again. Pain spiked through her head.

“You alright dear?” Petunia asked worriedly. Everyone else was also concerned, not that she could tell.

“Yeah…” she responded faintly. She debated what to do next, since she was 1) in her most heightened and aware state, 2) on the floor and 3) with people she _clearly_ wasn’t capable of having a basic conversation with without imploding. She had to think fast about everything happening in that moment. At this point they were going to figure it out sooner rather than later. _Not sure if I really care at this point._ She managed to pick herself back up and into her seat, then flashed a smile at them to ensure them that she was fine. Conversation moved away from her to other things. She halfway listened, chiming in here and there to convince them everything was fine. But she was now even more exhausted than before. She stared into the blackness, not bothering to care. She rested her head on her upper arm that was resting on the back of the seat, and her other hand griped the seat itself, letting the rumbles of the train flow through and ground her.

“What stop are you at, Sarah?” Draco asked.

Jolted from her inner peace and the lull of the train, Sarah responded groggily, “Hm?”

“What station do you need?” Lucius repeated.

“King’s Cross.”

“Well isn’t this splendid! We’ll all get off together. It’s like it was meant to be!” Petunia gushed. Sarah held back a sigh.

“We’re traveling to our new house,” Dudley explained.

“Really? So are we,” Draco said.

“Ah, need a change of pace too?” Vernon said.

“There were too many …things in our house. We figured we needed a fresh start,” Petunia continued.

“Yes, sometimes a blank slate is best.” Narcissa said. Lucius nodded slightly. Sarah covertly raised her eyebrows at the exchange.

“Where are you headed?” Dudley asked Sarah.

“Going home. Just got back from a trip.”

“Oh how wonderful! Where did you go?” Petunia asked.

“Australia.”

“My, that’s far. What pulled you there?” Narcissa asked.

“Visiting my girlfriend,” she smiled wistfully as the memories came instantly back, “Couldn’t miss our anniversary, after all.”

“How long have you been together?” Draco asked.

“4 years.”

“You going to marry her?” Dudley teased.

Sarah smiled and blushed. “Have to get her to come up and meet the family I’ve made here, first,” she chuckled.

The rest sombered up at the mention of Family. “What do you mean made?” Dudley asked.

Sarah thought for a moment before responding. She was faced with the same touchy subject and decisions as before. However, in this moment, something felt different. Maybe it was the magic burnout and exhaustion, maybe it was the pull to them, to end this game, or maybe it was the James Potter flowing through her, but she decided to answer them. She closed her eye lids, leaned back up and stretched her arms. “I’m an orphan, remember? Plus I was separated from my brother at such a young age, I only reconnected with him recently. So I’ve been absorbed into his family, which in itself is a quilt of several different families.” She stood up, pulled out her wand and cast her sight spell, and put it away. She flashed them the biggest, brightest, cheekiest, happiest, Potter-y grin she could. “Runs in the family.” She ran her fingers through her hair and her face melted down to a sly, smug, playful smile as she looked down at them. “But of course, you all knew that.” She turned and walked back to her seat, turned at their stunned faces for a moment, and mischievously smirked and stuck her tongue out before sitting down.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Neither family knew how to react, just six gaping faces filled with panic.

“Magic,” Dudley whispered. Petunia shushed him.

“Wait, you know of magic?!” Draco asked surprised.

“We have…family that practices it,” Vernon hesitated, “I presume then that you know of it as well.” Draco nodded. Narcissa and Lucius released a bit of tension, not that anything but neutral exterior ever showed.

“Who in your family is a wizard?” Narcissa asked.

Dudley was about to answer, but thought better of it and looked towards his mother, with a look of _Go on, tell them_. Petunia, interestingly enough, gave in.

“My sister was,” she said, with an unreadable expression, a hint of pride, a hint of pain, “Her name was Lily Evans. She went to Hogwarts…” She trailed off as a thought came to her. The same thought seemed to come into Dudley’s head as well. Meanwhile, Narcissa and Lucius’ eyes went wide.

“You can’t be serious,” Lucius asked, half muttering.

“What’s wrong?” Draco asked.

“Lily Evans is Harry’s mother,” Narcissa explained, also still in shock. Draco locked eyes with Dudley, stunned. Vernon grunted.

“Wait, you know Harry? Harry Potter?” Dudley asked surprised.

Draco’s eyes flashed dark for a moment, a hundred memories in a blink. “Y-yeah. Same year as him. At Hogwarts,” he paused, “And you are?”

“His cousin. Same age.”

Petunia was off staring at Sarah’s direction, which happened to be full of shuffling papers (Raw panic creating, once again, a fantastic work ethic). “Hogwarts is in Scotland, correct?” she asked, having ignored and now halting the conversations around her.

“Yes, it is,” Lucius answered, confused.

“A private school in Scotland…” Petunia said distractedly. The rest let her words sink in, and then promptly thought through the rest of everything Sarah had said, searching for clues.

After a few minutes of silence (Sarah mused if they were even still breathing, not having heard any of the conversations, just noise), Draco spoke up. “Father, do you still have the paper that had all the new professors at Hogwarts? It was a special edition of the Daily Prophet.”

Lucius thought for a moment. “I believe so.” He lifted his carry bag on to his lap and, elegantly and firmly, rummaged through his belongings. He searched through until he found it, folded up pieces of the Daily Prophet dating back to two Augusts ago. He set down his bag and unfolded it as the rest looked intently. The headline read **Next Generation of Professors Flies into Hogwarts**. The front page was filled with portraits of the new professors, full of personality (and movement, naturally), and underneath was the page number they were on. Lucius’ scanned the page until he came across a young woman with dark skin, glasses, hair up in a ponytail, arms crossed with a confident yet friendly smile. Exactly the same woman currently sitting on the opposite end of the car. He quickly flipped to the page, and scanned the page. He closed his eyes, and turned the paper around so the rest could see. The heading read **Professor of Defense against the Dark Arts: Sarah Evans**. The subheading continued: **Overseas War Hero Comes Home.** The page talked about, briefly, her time as an orphan in muggle world and the wizard world, her growth during her time at Hogwarts (a proud Hufflepuff), spending university in Australia where she ended up leading a majority of the forces against the Death Eaters that tried to take over. A grand edition to the history of Hogwarts, it said. No mention of killed family, of The Boy Who Lived, of blindness, of nightmares, of years of staying strong yet open and warm. Not that any of them were in a state of reading much, trying to decode the mystery with all the information. Oddly enough, it was Vernon who led to the cracking of the case.

“Petunia,” Vernon said, “Didn’t you say you had a dog named Sarah?”

“Yes, a small Yorkshire terrier, when I was very young,” Petunia said surprised, “Lily and I loved her very much. When she died, mother said we could name at least one of our daughters in honor of her. It was one of the few things we agreed upon.”

Dudley said slowly, “Sarah….Evans….”

They turned back to the paper and fell silent. Everyone’s gears were turning; all thinking of one answer that no one would admit to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“All packed up?” A voice startled Sarah out of her rapid writing. It was Dudley, with Draco standing next to him. He gestured towards her papers and books, “Kings’ Cross is coming up soon. You should get started packing up.”

Sarah was still a bit startled, “Oh. Yes. Perhaps I should. Thank you.” She started to put things away. The boys still stood there, thinking intently at her. She looked up awkwardly, “…Can I help you?” They glanced at each other, slightly nervous. She sat up straighter and smirked, “Or have you figured it out?”

Draco took a breath, “You have a brother.”

Sarah raised an eyebrow, “Mhm.”

Dudley said, “We know him.”

She bit back a bitter response and just said, “Last I checked.”

Dudley’s voice shook a little, “Know him well.”

Sarah could only look away, her jaw tightening a little.

Draco continued, “Your parents died. Killed.” No response. “By something…dark. You and your brother survived.” She winced briefly.

“Your brother became famous throughout the wizard world. And you… were sent somewhere.”

“Because they would have killed you.”

“While your brother was sent with your mother’s sister and her family.”

Sarah looked up at them with a neutral expression.

The boys glanced at each other again. “Harry,” Draco said, “Harry Potter.” A pause.

She lightly started clapping, with a hint of sarcasm, “Outstanding. Wonderful deduction skills.”

“So…we’re right?” Dudley asked.

“Oh bloody hell,” she groaned annoyed, loud enough so the adults could hear, “You all give me a panic attack and you’re not even sure about it?!”

“…Why would we give you a panic attack?” Draco asked.

She stood up quickly, finally snapping. (Her spell snapping as well, of course) “Because you’re you! Because your names make a Potter’s blood run cold! Because you have insulted and abused my family beyond their suffering and loneliness and the grave! Because my little brother has nightmares and traumas and I cannot quell them! Because Harry and I might as well be strangers! Because you all are the only ones I’d like to fling into the sun that are still alive! Because I love my family and you hate them! Because you hate me! Because you scare me! Because I am the embodiment of everything you hate and- and-“. Tears started rolling down her cheeks, “and I just want my family back!” She cried, and slid down the seat so she was slouching, almost curled up. She hid her head and started to sob.

Draco and Dudley stood there, unsure of what to say and so deeply in guilt. They looked at each other, another understanding passing between them.

“We’re sorry,” they said simultaneously, on accident. After the minor startled moment passed, Draco continued.

“Honestly, we do mean that,” he glanced/glared at their parents, who were paying full attention, “All of us.”

“If we could take back everything we did, we would.” Dudley said.

 “It’s Harry you have to make it up to, not me,” she laughed bitterly, “I don’t even know you.”

“Then we’ll do that,” Dudley said, and Draco nodded. Sarah rolled her eyes and shook her head as they walked away to plan with their parents, not believing in a word. The rest of the ride was in the same state as when it began. By the time it was over, Sarah would never admit it aloud, but she hoped that they really would try to make it up to Harry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When the train finally got to Kings’ Cross, and everyone got their luggage, Sarah momentarily forgot about the train ride and started looking eagerly in the crowds for Harry, who promised to meet her. He spotted her, and when they locked eyes, they started running towards each other and gave each other the strongest hug they could muster. Because of their years apart, they valued every moment together; learning new things about the other, bonding time doing anything and everything, and especially partings and reunions. Too busy rejoicing in each other’s embrace, the siblings didn’t notice amongst the bustle that six sets of eyes also had spotted Harry. The two finally let go and took a moment of small talk before starting to head out, when Sarah, just to be a smart ass, turned around and waved. Harry turned, confused and curious, and followed her eyes and action. At the sight, his mouth dropped. In a blink Sarah was smiling and pulling her luggage and Harry towards the exit, Harry still staring in shock at the Malfoys and Dursleys, who were also watching them go.

Harry asked, “Is that –“

“Yep”

“And they were –“

“Yep”

“Were you –“

“Yep”

“Did they talk?”

“Yep”

“Did you talk?”

“Yep”

 “And the car didn’t explode?”

“Nope”

He turned back in the direction of the train, then chuckled and shook his head in amazement. “They’re not going to believe this.” She simply smiled, and they headed home.


	2. The Forest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s epilogue 2! Who’s ready?!

The Forest

 

Sarah had been over at the Burrow with Andromeda and Teddy one day when Harry asked to show her something, which involved traveling to the closest patch of forest they could find. He wouldn’t tell her anything, just that it was a surprise. Curious, she agreed.

“We’re almost at a good spot, come on!” he said.

He grabbed her hand, mischief in his eyes, and started at a faster pace. Sarah imagined how many times someone looked at the Marauders, looked at that same look. She thought of how many times people looked at her when she had this look. She wondered why people trusted her. Looking at her brother, there was no harmful intent, no desire for anything but good natured fun in that look of trouble. She smiled and let him take her hand, leading her.

They stopped at a small clearing in the forest. Harry turned to her and held out his hand. In his palm there was a small black multi-sided stone. “Turn it once.”

“Harry wha-“

“Just turn it.” She frowned, but flipped the stone one time. He turned it another.

“If this is-“

“You have a process to brace yourself for emotional moments to maintain the spell, right?”

“….Yeah?”

“I suggest you do it. And when you are ready, turn it again and hold my hand.” His face gave nothing away, just the same knowing look. She paused, but then closed her eyes and went through her process. Then she twisted the stone and laced her fingers in his, the stone in both their palms. Nothing happened for a moment, and then 5 forms shimmered into existence in a semi-circle in front of them. Ghosts. Sarah gasped and put her hand in her mouth as a last resort magic stabilizer. Harry smiled.

“Harry you need to be cautious with using the stone too many times,” Lily said.

“Lils please, he’s used it one other time,” Sirius said.

“It still is good to be careful,” Remus said.

“I’m sure Harry knows what he’s doing,” James said.

“Are we going to acknowledge the person standing next to him or should we just keep acting like neither one can hear us?” Tonks said, rolling her eyes. This pulled their attentions to the two.

“Harry, who is this?” James asked.

Looking over her again, Tonks exclaimed happily. “Merlin’s beard, is that Sarah Evans?” The rest looked at her in confusion, and then to Sarah.

Harry spoke up, “Well, technically yes. But Evans isn’t her actual last name.”

Tonks raised her eyebrows, “Oh really?”

Harry looked at each of the ghostly intently, landing last on his parents, and slowly grinned at them. Remus, Sirius, Lily and James’ faces all grew wide with surprise and heartbreak and shock and joy, all staring at Sarah.

“Can’t be.” Sirius muttered.

“Aaaand I’m out of the loop again.” Tonks said, exasperated.

“Dora how do you know her?” Remus asked, voice full of shock.

“She’s a Hufflepuff. There the same time I was, couple years younger. And how do you all know her?”

“Well she’s….she’s….” Remus’ words got caught in his throat as tears started to stream down his face. Sirius, James and Lily were in a similar state.

“Tonks, I’d like to introduce you to my older sister, and Remus’ goddaughter, Sarah Potter.” Harry said.

Tonks looked at them for a moment, confused and surprised. “Alright, didn’t see that one coming.”

“We were so scared! What happened? Where were you?” Lily sobbed.

“McGonagall said…so I put….but I didn’t believe…” Remus tried before losing it again.

“You were alive this whole time?” Sirius cried, heartbreak in his voice. “How is that possible! They said there was no one left in the house!”

Realization dawned on James, “You listened to me. You found the box.”

Meanwhile Sarah was trying her hardest to soak up the sight of all of them in front of her for as long as she could hold, but at her father’s words she finally lost hold of the spell and broke down in gasping sobs. Harry clenched their hands as she doubled over her knees to let everything out and gather it up again.

“Are they still here?” She asked Harry once she found her voice again.

Harry looked at the ghosts, a small somber smile on his face. “Yeah, they’re still here. They’ll be here for as long as we hold the stone, so don’t let go alright?” She sniffled and nodded as she stood up straight and clenched her hand in his. She took off her glasses and put them in her pocket, as they wouldn’t be needed for a long while. She ran her hand over her face, then smiled and waved at them like a little sheepish kid.

“Hi.”

All the ghosts, except Tonks, were looking at her, both drinking in her presence and in confusion at what just happened.

Tonks analyzed their stunned silence, slowly piecing together this new information with what she already knew about her quick and warm friend. “Heeey, Sarah.”

“Heeey, Tonks.” She replied with a giggle, head titled to her voice.

“I uh, I think I figured some things out about that accident you had when you were little that left you blind and killed your family.”

She huffed a laugh, “I think I have as well, though probably in much more detail. … You’re still the legend of the House you know. Students still talk about you.”

She smiled, but her face was watery. “And you? Have you done anything legendary?”

“Just the stunt in the Restricted section. I’ve faded into the walls like always. Even as a professor. I’m odd because I’m a Hufflepuff leading Slytherins in a cursed position with perfected spells and I’m Harry’s sister. All nothing extraordinary.”

“You deserve more than shadows.”

She shook her head and went on. “Your mother misses you. I’m staying with her now. And Teddy. She wishes she could have had a better relationship with you.”

“I’m sorry we couldn’t meet up before you left for university in Australia. I’m sorry that I can’t convey to you everything I want to say because I can’t touch you and you can’t see me. So imagine I’m punching your shoulder a couple times and hugging you, alright?” Tears streamed down her face. Sarah nodded sadly.

There was a silent pause. “Hey Uncle Remus?” she asked, kind of quietly.

His face was hit with emotion, “Yeah?”

“How did you know I was still alive?”

Tears threatened to pour over his face. The others looked to him with surprise and curiosity, but his eyes never left her. “Well, um, when Teddy was born, McGonagall gave me a note that Dumbledore left for me. It just said _She lives_. I’ll admit, I didn’t believe it, but something inside me told me to put it in the will. And then I asked Harry personally, so there was at least one guaranteed godparent.”

She tilted her head to the side, “But how did you know it was me?”

He chuckled and smiled at her fondly, “Why wouldn’t I when you’re etched in my soul, never to be forgotten?”

She whimpered, brushing back her tears.

“All this time, I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you. I am a bad charm on everyone-“

“Don’t say that.”

“It’s true! Look at you! Look at us!”

“I’ve survived situations where the world doesn’t give a shit about me, like you have. We both are stronger for it, and found people that do care.”

“But-“

She pointed to the sound of his voice. “What happened to me is not and has never been your fault!” She pointed to where she guessed Sirius would be. “Or yours neither! I’ve made that official.” She said promptly.

Sirius smiled, affection in his features. “You fought the Ministry?”

“I was away at Uni. My friends and I sent many letters.” She smirked, “A load of parchment with Australian postage with colorful diction _may_ have intimidated them a bit.”

The rest chuckled and smiled, while Sirius beamed and laughed full on. “Fantastic!” He look at her. “You doing well for yourself?”

“Yeah.”

He nodded. “Good.”

“Sarah’s patronus is a black wolf, by the way.” Harry grinned. Sarah smiled sheepishly.

Tonks slow clapped, chuckling, and Sirius grinned. Remus crossed his arms, suppressing his smile.

“Patronus’ don’t have fir colors,” he said.

Sarah held in a laugh and said, “No, but an Animagnus form does.” Tonks and Sirius cheered and Remus sighed in defeat and smiled warmly.

“I should hope you’ve done so legally.”

She grinned, “Why of course. What sort of wizard becomes an unofficial animagnus?”

“In my personal opinion and professional experience, a very impulsive stupid lot of wizards does,” Remus said.

Sirius gave them both a look, (at least Sarah assumed so), said “I can at least hit one of you,” and swat Remus on the shoulder. Remus and Sarah burst into giggles. Tonks held the sound in her heart.

She paused, her face dropping a little. “I miss you both.”

Remus and Sirius looked at each other, then to her. “We miss you too, kid.” Sirius said.

“And we love you. And we’re very proud of you,” Added Remus. She nodded.

The last two on the line had been quiet this whole time. They were soaking in every interaction, attempting to connect that this battle-worn blind woman in front of them was their daughter, once so young and little, who is still alive and thriving and now older than them. Gone to university. Became a Professor. Became an Animagnus.

“Mum…Dad…” It was like she was 5 years old again.

The words from that small voice echoed in their hearts. Lily and James broke down in sobs.

“Oh come on, don’t cry. You’ll make me cry,” Sarah said, a sob rising in her throat. Harry wanted to reach out and comfort their parents, but it would do no good.

After a couple minutes they calmed down enough, but they were still very emotional.

“Sarah…Little Sarah…Small Tiny Sarah with small hands and small ears and small eyes and small feet that ran everywhere..,” Lily muttered, trembling and tears threatening to pour out more.

“You listened to me. You found it. You found the box. You listened. You listened to me and found the box and got the cloak and you went to go find Harry and you somehow survived. Bloody hell I can’t believe you listened to me” James rambled on, distressed.

Sarah started to giggle at their ranting. “Do they do this often?”

“Yes,” Remus and Sirius said simultaneously. She smiled and shook her head.

“Hey hey, look at me please,” she said gently to them, then listened for silence.

Her voice pulled them from their rantings.

“Take a breath. Look,” She nudged Harry with her shoulder, “we’re okay. Everything is alright now.” She smiled. “Yes, I found the box. Hid under the cloak, as all children would do. And I went to find Harry.” She chuckled sourly, “Seems I wasn’t the only one.”

“And your eyes?” Lily asked.

“When he threw the spell, it bounced back, creating a powerful force of energy that threw me back. Concussion and blindness, couple of broken ribs.”

“And a house full of dead bodies and a baby,” James lamented.

“Don’t think like that, it’s bad for your health.”

“I’m dead!”

“Doesn’t mean you should drive yourself crazy over the past. There is no changing it.”

James looked at her, tears in his eyes. “You’ve grown too fast.”

She gave a small, sad smile. “I know,” she said quietly. “But everything is well now.”

“I’m so happy you are alive,” Lily said tearfully.

“I’m thankful to be alive. That we both are. And it’s because of you both that we are. I miss you both so much.”

“We miss you too, and we love you both dearly. We’re so proud,” James said.

Lily sniffled and said, “W-We’ll look out for you, like we have for Harry.” Sarah nodded.

Harry nudged Sarah, “We should head back now.”

She nodded. “I love you. All of you.” She said, and then grinned as bright as she could.

“I love you all too.” Harry said.

They all smiled warmly at the pair of siblings. “Until we meet again, then,” Remus said, “Keep working hard.”

“Be good,” Lily said.

“Stick up for yourselves and each other!” Sirius grinned.

“Give Teddy a life full of love,” Tonks smiled.

“Live you lives by your design,” James said gently.

Sarah and Harry let go of their hands, letting the stone drop. With a flash of a smile, they were gone once again.

She reached over and pulled Harry into a hug, “I love you so much.”

He hugged her back tightly, “I love you too. I just wanted to give you closure, and them.”

“I appreciate it, thank you.”

Sarah pulled out her cane on her right and reached out her left hand to take Harry’s. Harry smiled and took it, and together they made their way back to their homes, a part of their hearts finally at peace.


	3. The Home (kinda)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I lost steam writing this last piece, and I’m not content with what I wanted to write. But I still liked some pieces of it and I don’t wanna leave this part empty handed, even if it’s broken up. If you’ve stuck through this whole story I really appreciate it!
> 
> Disclaimer: I don’t own the Harry Potter series

The final guest arrived with a knock on the door. Andromeda opened it and in came a bundled up, shivering girl with a suitcase, covered with snow. She was wearing so much, it was a wonder she could see.

“Are you Lana?” The freezing girl could only nod. Andromeda grinned and quickly gestured her inside. The girl breathed a sigh of relief in the first couple moments as the warmth rushed to her.

“WOW” she exclaimed breathily, now that she was getting circulation again. “I don’t think anything could prepare me for the temperatures outside right now! How does Sarah do this and not die of temperature shock? I mean I guess the summer weather is different here but how does she survive these winters? How did she survive _our_ winter? How does she adapt so fast?” She rambled on and on to no one in particular as she jumped up and down, rubbing her arms, her whole body shaking as it tried to regulate its temperature.

Molly eagerly greeted her, “Well I am so glad you have made it safely. Everyone! This is Sarah’s girlfriend Lana!”

-

“Where’s Sarah? And Harry? Aren’t they here?”

The Weasleys smiled. “They put the Teddy bear down for a nap a while ago.” Grinny said. “They should be up within the hour.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In a bedroom in the Tonks’ house, Sarah and Harry were curled up on the floor with little 3 year old Teddy snug in the middle of them. Each one was sound asleep. They each had a pillow; a big blanket was on top of them. There was no tension, no stress in the Potter siblings’ bodies. Their faces had a content sereneness to them. They actually looked their age, two young adults instead of seeming decades older. Teddy appeared to fit between them perfectly, like he was the missing piece, like he was trying to fill them up again. This scene was unbroken for two hours, which is the limit Teddy has on his naps. He started to stir, and when the noise from the rest of the house reached him, he fully started to wake. The movement woke his two sleeping buddies, who also started to stir. Teddy patted Harry and Sarah on their heads and toddled out of the room, which made them chuckle.

“Morning” Harry said groggily but cheerful.

“Is it now?” Sarah laughed. She had been so at peace she had let the runes drop from her eyes, so she woke up blind. He chuckled and reached up for his glasses above his pillow. She reached for her wand and reapplied her runes. They laid there for a while, content in the silence of each other presence. Then they smiled and stretched and slowly made their way towards the living room, never expecting for an instant what they would end up finding.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They stood at either side of the door, quietly watching and admiring the room. Luna, of course, noticed them after a few moments, but Hermione was the first to say something. She grinned cheekily. “Well, looks like the sleeping beauties finally awake.”

“We were starting to worry you got lost,” Ron chuckled, “The only one with a good set of eyes and an affinity of taking things scampered ahead of you quite a bit ago.”

Harry grinned, but Sarah just stared. “Does my heart deceive or does a familiar lovely lady great strides from home grace the room?”

Lana rolls her eyes and nearly fully suppresses her smile.  “A lady who looks with her heart and not her head is sure cause mayhem.”

“Love’s mayhem strives to go unnoticed, for what grander gesture of affection than to take up one’s whole world with it’s power.”

“What grander gesture of adoration than to understand that one’s whole world can walk beside them, hand in hand. What grander sorrow and loneliness is there in knowing one’s love is far away and yet feels so close.”

“Perhaps then, Love is patient, and understanding, as much as mischievous and wild.”

“Doubt I not, for love’s triumph can thrive even in this snowy weather.”

“It seems my love did not heed my warnings.”

“It seems your warnings were not adequate and perhaps too distracted were your senses.”

“Then forgive my senses and every other part of my aching body and soul that has wished to hold my love’s once more for many eves.”

“Mine has wished the same, and so I traveled. So is my love going to travel into my embrace and warm this chilled existence or shall I-“ Lana was cut off by Sarah’s swift hug.

“There is no force that could stop me.”

“Beyond the end of time.” They kissed passionately, out of love and longing and because they can. When it broke, they smiled and giggled to themselves.

 

Harry smiled sheepishly, “Well, don’t I feel perfectly inadequate.”

“Dear brother, that can’t be a new feeling.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading A Potter’s Tale!


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